(ECNS) -- Online purchasers in China tend to throw money at imported goods during promotions, accounting for 65 percent of fast moving online consumer good (FMCG) sales, according to a report co-realsed by Bain capital and Kantar.
The report discovered this preference after investigating the shopping behavior of 40,000 mainland households.
It stated that sales during promotion only accounted for 14 percent of the total for brick and mortar shops, while the ratio nearly doubled to 35 percent for online retailers, based on figures from the Double 11 and 12 shopping frenzy.
On the other hand, sales of imported goods accounted for 40 percent of total online sales, while only 10 percent of offline sales came from imported goods, it said, adding that online retailers have provided Chinese consumers with easy access to imported goods.
Sales promotion and imported goods have resulted in 65 percent of online sales, much higher than the 20 percent related to offline sales, the report noted.
However, Chinese consumers prefer certain types of FMCG. Online retail sales of the top ten types of goods, including skin care products, baby formula and baby diapers, have accounted for 77 percent of overall online retail sales, and only 43 percent of offline sales.
Interestingly, the report showed that consumers prefer to buy high-end toothbrush, beer and hair conditioner brands, while the average price of toothbrushes sold online was 102 percent higher than that sold offline.
Yu Jian, senior executive of Kantar in China, showed confidence in FMCG online sales's growth, although the rate declined to 34 percent in 2014 from 41.8 percent in 2013.
